Amid ongoing political turmoil in the Middle East, Greece is choosing to take a stand and officially recognize Palestine, as Sputnik found out.
"The recognition of the State of Palestine will be on agenda in the Greek parliament in the coming weeks," says a source in the nation’s largest political party, Syriza.
"By the example of Vatican and other European nations, Athens will hold a parliament voting on the issue of the recognition of Palestine. At the initiative of the Syriza party, the Greek parliament plans to recognize the State of Palestine along the 1967 borders," he added.
Recently strengthened ties with Tel Aviv, however, may present some issues for Athens.
"Given the cooperation with Israel the Greek coalition government stands for recognizing Palestine through parliament voting, not via government channels," a source in the Greek cabinet told Sputnik.
According to the Convention on Diplomatic Relations, recognition of a state by another state occurs through a decision by the Council of ministers and through publication of the law by the state’s government. Then, the information is sent on down the chain of command via diplomatic channels.
"According to the government’s plan, the parliament is likely to hold a special session on Palestine in the coming weeks. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is expected to participate in the session. During the session voting will be held to recognize the State of Palestine," the source said.
At the same time, "Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras who gives high priority to Greek-Israeli relations plans to organize in the coming months a three-party 'Mediterranean summit' between Greece, Cyprus and Israel," a source in the Greek Foreign Ministry told Sputnik.
